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The hall was vast, the illu the shadows only so far Each step she took sounded in her ears, her bare feet padding over the sht with a little throb of sness

The pointers turned sharply, and she noticed that she’d nearly passed an interior doorway After crossing to it, she pulled on the handle and saw a set of stairs leading down into the gloom The tunnel was dark, but there was no dirt nor did she see a single insect hiding in the corners The steps curved down and around, depositing her in another rooround level in a room where the roof was supported by many thick arches The floor tiles were a different color than the ones above These were slate gray, in thick squares that tiled the entire area Rows of wooden benches were arranged facing the head of the roo them The benches axed and polished, made from dark-stained oak that could seat several people across She walked down the center aisle, stopping to feel the wood as she passed each one, and the light from the orb illuminated the head of the room

In the center of a small cove at the head of the room stood a stone table, with a flat squarish surface It was built atop of several layers of stone blocks It was long enough that a single body could lay atop the surface, and the sight of it transfixed her A rushing, soothing, excited feeling cae table? What did itthe edge, careful not to let herfa that whispered inside her heart, calling to her She glanced down at the orb and saw the pointers ai to leave the peculiar roo her lip, she rested the heel of her hand against the table one s inside her Then she followed the pointers into the alcove that appeared to go nowhere The alcove was raised slightly up a thin stone step There was no other way to go

What rong? The alcove led nowhere Confused, she stepped back off and looked at the pointers again, but they were still pointing into the dead space Neriting appeared in the lower half of the orb, but it was not helpful to her Going back to the table, the pointers directed her back again to the alcove

At the alcove, she looked for carvings or Leerings that ive her a clue what she was to do next The walls were polished stone, like the rest of the roo She touched the walls and pushed, but they were firm Then she stepped back off into the rooap between it and the floor She knelt and ran her finger along the edge, and it was cold to the touch After setting down the orb and her shoes, she pried her fingers beneath it and lifted

The entire floor of the alcove, stone and all, raised effortlessly, exposing steep stairs down Breathless with excitement, Lia descended carefully and the lid of the alcove floor swung down above her With the orb as her only light, her toes scraping against rough stone, she made her way into the bowels of the shaft until it ended in a jagged room that was not pristine or sculptured or scented with fresh flowers The den was harsh and gloomy and sround was hard and cobbled, and she slipped her shoes back on Three tunnels diverted in three different directions Each one was low enough that Lia had to stoop Without the orb, she never would have knohich one to take It pointed clearly to one of them

An ancient feeling stifled the air Above her the full weight of the abbey oppressed her, and the wonder of it startled her and made her a little fearful Until Colvin had come to Muirwood, she had no idea there were secret roorounds Perhaps one of the tunnels led to the room where he had discovered the tomes? How many more tunnels were there? What other secrets did the Alder the orb, Lia ducked low and started down the tunnel

The Leering blocking the as carved into the likeness of a man with a sad face It was fixed inside a stone wall that coh the tunnel felt as if she had walked at least a league, but it could not have been that far for the Pilgrirounds, across High Street Walking with a crouched back and a halting pace did not lend itself well for speed The Leering see what kind of power it held In herhappened No fire or water or any other such htly and smokeless as it had, continued to point to the wall